Reed



Dec. l0, 1940. M MACCAFERRl 2,224,308

REED

Filed Jan. 2, 1940 l Z5@ Zw g' a 1NVENT0R.

' ATTORNEY.

Patented Dec. l0, 1940 UNITED STATES PATENT vOFFICE 1 Claim.

This invention relates to reeds for musical wind instruments, and moreparticularly has for its object to provide an artificial reed which willtake the place of cane reeds.

While cane reeds have given excellent results in the vibratory qualitiesof the reed and in the depth of tone obtained, the objection thereto isthat they are unhygienic in that the saliva adhering to the cane reedpermeates the fibers or cells thereof and cannot be readily cleaned fromthe reed. This moisture in such reeds,

when not in use, impairs their usefulness..

Various attempts have been made to use other than cane reds, as othervegetable matter, or as plastic or metal, but such substitutes have notbeen successful in that while they followed the form of cane reeds, theydid not have the inherent resiliency of the same.

The making of reeds of this kind of such substituted material overcomesmany disadvantages of the cane reeds, in that such metal or plasticmaterial reeds may be cleaned, but the objection to these is that theyare not sufficiently pliable and therefore refrain from vibrating withsuch freedom as is required by the musical instruments to which suchreeds are intended to be attached. Attempts to make such substitutereeds more flexible by the provision of longitudinal grooves have,however, failed in that such grooves affect the vibrations.

The present invention is based upon a certain principle discovered byme. I have found in the operation of reeds that it is necessary that thelongitudinal margins of the reed must be much denser or stiffer than inthe central portion, and the longitudinal central portion forms theactive vibratory part of the reed, instead of the entire reed bothlongitudinally and transversely considered. This closer density in themarginal portions compared to the central portion enables the centralportion to freely vibrate and the denser portion to restA upon the wallsof the mouthpiece. Furthermore, dependent upon the cohesion of themolecules of the material of which the improved reed is made, variationsin curvature, in depth of the vibratoryA membrane, in thethickness ofthe marginal walls, and in the tone chamber of the improved reed,require consideration.

Recognizing this principle of operation, I have provided a reed of asuitable material which gives the greatest freedom to vibration forcesat its central portion both longitudinally and transversely considered,with lesser freedom to vibration forces at the longitudinal marginalportions of the improved reed, and -I have provided these marginalportions with shoulders or the like to rest upon the walls of themouthpiece. In addition to the utilization of the principle so applied,I have found that by providing a cavity at the bottom of the reedtheincoming air which serves to vibrate the tip of the reed, moves alongthe bottom of the reed longitudinally of the reedand in this cavity. Thevibrations of the reed are enhanced by including overtone or harmonicvibrations to be translated to the adjacent air, which, in turn, setsinto operation the Vibration of the air within the mouthpiece.

The invention will be more fully described hereinafter, embodimentsthereof Will be shown in the drawing, and the invention will be finallypointed out in the claim.

In the accompanying drawing:

Figure 1 is a longitudinal section of a part of a mouthpiece having myimproved reed applied thereto;

Figure 2 is a transverse section taken on line 2 2 of Figure l;

Figure 3 is aplan view of the bottom of my improved reed;

Figure 4 is a vertical longitudinal section taken along the line 4 4 ofFigure 3;

Figures 5, 6, '7, 8 and 9 are transverse sections taken on lines 5 5, 66, 1 1, 8 8 and 9 9 of Figure 4;

Figure is a transverse section corresponding to the section 8 8 ofFigure 4, but showing a modified form of the reed;

Figure 11 is a longitudinal section of a modified form;

Figure 12 is a longitudinal section of another modified form;

Figure 13 is a transverse section of another modified form;

Figure 14 is modified form;

Figures l5 and 16 are plan views of the bottom of the reeds of differentcut-out shapes than that shown in Figure 3; and

a transverse section of another reed rod showing the method of cuttingthe reed blank from the cane.

Similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts throughoutthe various views.

Referring to the drawing, and more particularly to Figures 1 and 2,there is shown a mouthpiece generally indicated by I5, having acylindrical bore I0 and a tapering front Wall l1, the upper surfaces I8and I9 being shaped to re- Figure 17 is a transverse section of a caneceive a reed. Attaching means of known construction indicated by I9 and20 embrace the mouthpiece I5 in a manner to hold a reed upon themouthpiece with the rear portion 2I of the reed held in clamped relationto the mouthpiece and with the front portion 22 of the reed held in aposition in respect to the mouthpiece so as to have the front portionfree to vibrate, the mouthpiece shown and the attaching means being ofconventional character and no claim of invention is made to the same.

Referring now to Figure 1'1, a cross section of a cane reed rod 23 isthere shown and this rod, having a hollow bore 24, is cut vertically bythe vertical direction lines 25 and 29. It is cut horizontally along thehorizontal line 21, and when the material between the two vertical lines25 and 26 and the horizontal line 21 is removed from the cane reed rod23, the basic blank of a reed is thereby formed. The contour of such ablank is like the transverse section shown in Figure 9, and such acontour extends along the entire length of the blank. Such a blank isthen subjected to a cutting or grinding action to taper one end alongits outer portion and the bottom is left entirely flat. The end resultis the known cane reed generally used. Its marginal portions have agreater density than the central portion along the tapering end. Such isthe shape of the known cane reed.

It will be particularly noted that due to the fact that the horizontalline 21 has its ends adjacent to the peripheral contour of the rod, thegrains of the wood are closer to each other than along the central partof the horizontal line 21. This density of fiber structure makes thelateral portions of the blank so out out relatively hard and stiff, andthe consequent reed, when it has been shaved down into reed form, isrigid, relatively along the marginal portions and of less vibratorycharacter at such margins than at the central portion thereof which istransversely and longitudinally relatively free to vibrate.

The improved reed shown in Figures 3 and 4 provides shoulder portions 28and 29v at each longitudinal margin of the improved reed 30. The depthsof these shoulders 23 and 29 increase from the tip 3I of the reed 39 tothe point indicated at about 32; the bottom parts of these shoulders areflat and in the same plane. Between these tapering shoulders there is amembrane portion which is thin, and while it tapers slightly for ease ofmanufacture, may be without a taper. Transversely considered, from tipto about the point 32, the outer contour and inner contour is the sameor nearly symmetrical. Longitudinally considered, a curved portion 33 isprovided, and along the longitudinal axis 34 of the reed, the spacebecomes deeper until, due to the curved line 35, it diminishes mergingwith the at bottom. There is thereby formed between the two shoulders 23and 29, a space which in transverse sections increases from the tip 3|of the reed to about the point 32, and this space again diminishes thelatter preferably in curved form.

A section taken on line 5--5 of Figure 4 shows the tip portion of thereed as being very thin and without any shoulders at the marginalportions thereof. This tip portion 38 is set into` vibration by theplayer and is free to vibrate because of its freedom from any attachmentto the mouthpiece. The shoulders 28 and 29 then gradually increase indepth or thickness, and in the portion about at the line 3-8 of Figure4, the shoulders 28 `Mld 29 extend from the membrane portion 33a to thegreatest extent. The flat bottoms of the shoulders as indicated by 28aand 29a. being in the same plane as the mouthpiece seats. make contactwith the corresponding flat surfaces I3 and I9 of the mouthpiece.

As the shoulders 29 and 29 increase, the depth of space between themembrane portion 33a and a plane passing through the bottom surfaces 29aand 29a increases in volume until to about the position taken on line8-3 of Figure 4, where the shoulder yportions 29 and 29 are largest andthe space shows a portion indicated by the double headed arrow 31, whichis larger than any section taken between the tip- 3I of the reed and thesection 8-3 of Figure 4.

Due to the curvature of the cutout spatial portion 33 shown in Figure 4,the depth increases somewhat to form a pocket 39, and thereupon thedepth decreases as before stated by the descending curvature 35, as seenin longitudinal section in Figure 4. The section taken on line 9--9 ofFigure 4 and shown in Figure 9 corresponds to the usual contour of canereeds, but may be varied Ias desired in the improved reed, as theimproved reed is not dependent upon any pre-formed shape as is the casewith the reed cane.

In Figure 10 a modified form is shown in that the shoulder portions areprovided with fillets lll and 4I which have the advantage of providinggradual curved surfaces from the bottom flat surfaces 23a and 29a, and areed made in accordance with the longitudinal section of Figure 4, andthe transverse section of Figure 10, provides at its under surface 39a,a curved spatial portion throughout, both longitudinally andtransversely curved. It will be particularly noted that this curvedspatial portion indicated by 33 and 39 in Figure 4 and transversely byFigures 6 to 8 and Figure 10 is at the bottom of the reed, as if out outof the bottom surface 39a of the reed 30. By this recessed portion, anyair which has entered the mouthpiece and set the tip of the reed intovibration, ows along these curved walls and may be set into vibration inthe space so formed by the vibration of the central part of the reeditself, and this air so vibrated has its vibrations then translated intothe air passing through the mouthpiece.

The improved reed may be made of plastic material, wood, or metal suchas aluminum, or any other suitable kind of material, and may be stampedor pressed out by machine operation, and when of plastic material may bemolded of Bakelite, Catalin or the like.

It has been seen that an improved reed has been provided which is basedupon a new principle of operation, namely, to have its lateral marginalportions relatively stiil, and to provide a flexible membranetherebetween, and that a space bounded by preferably curved walls hasbeen provided at the bottom of the reed to act in conjunction with thespace at the interior of the mouthpiece to which the reed has beenapplied.

In Figure 11 is shown a longitudinal section in which the membrance 50-is substantially of the same thickness from tip 53 to la transverseshoulder 5I, which in this modification is rather abrupt, that is,without curvature. This reed is provided with lateral marginal shoulders52 tapering from tip 53 to shoulder 5I, and increasing in thicknesstowards the shoulder. The recess or chamber 54 is formed thereby. Thebody portion 55 has a transverse cross section of the shape shown inFigure 9.

In Figure 12 is shown a similar reed with a shallow curved inner portion56.

In Figure 13 is shown a transverse section of a modified form ofimproved reed, of double or reverse curvatures, inner and outer beingsubstantially the same, and the inner part of the shoulder or flangecurved; and in Figure 14 is shown a transverse section with almostparallel walls and then curved down to the bottom of the shoulders. Ineach case the drawing shows about the maximum of the shoulders or themaximum depth of transverse recess. In Figure 13 the two convex curves60 and 6l merge into the lateral curves 62 and 63, of concave character,with the inner and outer parts of the shoulders rounded as shown by 64and 65. The shoulders are fiat as at 66. The recess 61 is made up ofseveral curved portions. In Figure 14 the Walls 68 and 69 are almoststraight and parallel and the shoulders and 1I are rounded.

In Figures 15 and 16 diierent recess coniigurations longitudinallyconsidered are shown of the bottom. In Figure 15 the recess extendsbackwards, with almost square shoulders, 12 and 13, and a straightacross end Wall 14. In Figure 16 the recess 15 is V-shaped with arounded apex 16. These various conto'urs and coniigurations are notarbitrary, but they are shown as examples resulting from different tonequalities enabled to be brought into being. The depth of the recessesincreases the fullness of the tones, the curves the smoothness, etc.,and these again vary with the character of the material used for thereed. The material chosen is naturally light in their iiat sides orbottoms upon the mouthpiece, and with a bottom recess or tonal chamberof various configurations, and a top of straight or inclined taperingshape, which may be made of -a material other than cane reed but has allthe advantages of flexibility and resistance to bending thereof; and hasthe advantage of overcoming the objections attendant cane reeds. Theteachings of the invention lead also to the making of reeds formouthpieces o f musical instruments of shapes other than now used.Heretofore, the shape of a mouthpiece was dependent upon and resultedfrom the shape of a cane reed, the shape of which was determined by itsmaking from a reed cane. Now, variously shaped reeds may be made, andthe mouthpiece changed accordingly, depending upon the kind of tonedesired to be produced. l

I have described an embodiment of my invention, but it is clear thatchanges may be made therein without departing from the spirit of theinvention as set forth in the appended claim.

I claim:

The improvement in artificial reeds possessing the vibratory and tonalqualities of cane reeds for wind instruments, which consists in a stripof material other than cane reed, having a rear portion substantiallyplano-convex in cross-section adapted to be clamped to the mouth-pieceof the instrument, and a front portion having its upper face taperingdownwardly to the tip, the under side of said front portion having acavity intermediate the marginal longitudinal edges of said frontportion extending longitudinally rearwardly from substantially the tipto the rear extremity of said front portion to form a vibratory membraneof substantially equal thickness, the marginal longitudinal edges ofsaid front portion forming stifiening shoulders gradually increasing inthickness from the tip to the rear extremity of said front portion andadapted to rest on the longitudinal edges of the mouth-piece.

MARIO MACCAFERRI.

